The Mamas & the Papas - California Dreamin'
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Artist: The Mamas & the PapasEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1995-01-01
Music Label: Mca Special Products
Soundtracks:
- California Dreamin'
- Spanish Harlem
- Glad to Be Unhappy
- Go Where You Wanna Go
- Monday, Monday
- My Girl
- No Salt on Her Tail
- Sing for Your Supper
- Twelve-Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming to the Canyon)
- Words of Love
Free Music Notes for California Dreamin'
Free Music Review: Monday Dreamin'
Hit: 3 Stars
I was only 13 when the Mamas & the Papas released their first single "California Dreamin'." The single and the band were touted as an integral part of the emerging "folk rock" boom. To me, that meant, beautiful harmoning, intelligent lyrics with a hint of a backbeat. It didn't really occur to me at the time that, like Sonny and Cher and a few other "folk rock" acts, they really were more of a standard pop act than an actual blend of folk and rock music--musically speaking anyway. In terms of image and actual life style, they fit in quite well with the So. Cal. neo-folkie scene. Point was, you could hear "California Dreamin'" and "Monday Monday" on ANY radio station of the era (even the ones that were banning "Eight Miles High" and--even--"Puff the Magic Dragon."
(I've always wondered if John Phillips tragic descension into drugs--including the poppy--had something to do with misplaced guilt over being to "poppy.")
Whatever, "Monday Monday" and "Dreamin'" were gorgeous tunes. The fact that succeeding songs were more "pretty good" than "downright brilliant" however suggested that there was at the group was experiencing something of a sophomore (or was it "junior") jinx. "Twelve Thirty" is a nice number, but it probably would have gone nowhere if it had the group's FIRST release.
This bargain sampler would seem to have pretty much many listeners would ever need: three of the bigger hits ("Dreamin'," "Monday," and "Twelve Thirty"). It also has one of Cass's better solo vocals with "Words of Love" (along with a lesser one, "Sing For Your Supper"). Solo vocals were something of a rarity for the group, at least as far as their singles went. If "Words" had been a bigger hit, it might have given the group a little more leeway as to what they could try to release for the radio. The four-way harmony thing was getting formulaic, actually, and the solo numbers were refreshing in a very real way.
Sweet voiced Denny Doherty got a few solos too. At least, I'm pretty sure that's him doing the soul thing on "My Girl" and "Spanish Harlem" here. The arrangements are less than inspired, but Denny sings them well enough. Some will have a problem with him doing these numbers more as conventional ballads than as something more, well, Motown. I'm not one of those. These are pleasant (though not brilliant renditions: Laura Nyro would show the world a few years later just what a white singer could do with a number like "Spanish Harlem," but Laura was something else again.
The frustation one might get from listening to this unabashed sampler stems from at least two sources. The non-hit tracks are, in the main, unremarkable. Not really a good indication of what the group could actually do. More importantly (and as other reviewers have noted) the record is tinny. There is stuff out there that's been re-mastered, is more comprehensive, and is NOT that expensive at this point. Unless you really only want these few hits and nothing more, you'd probably be wise to look a bit further.
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